31 Nonprofit Media

[Pages:20]31 Nonprofit Media

Though public radio and TV--NPR and PBS member stations--are perhaps the most recognized noncommercial

outlets, the nonprofit media sector is far larger and more varied. It includes nonprofit websites, PEG channels, lower power FM stations, state public affairs networks, journalism schools, public radio networks unaffiliated with NPR, foundations, mobile news apps, and others. The public policy issues affecting nonprofit media organizations vary as well.

Public Broadcasting

FCC Rules Governing Public TV and Radio Since the 1930s, Congressional and FCC policies have mandated that spectrum be set aside for noncommercial use. The FCC first began reserving spectrum for noncommercial educational (NCE) radio broadcast use in 1938, selecting channels in the 41?42 MHz band1 before moving the reserved band to 88?92 MHz in 1945.2 In radio, the FCC continues to reserve the lowest 20 channels on the FM broadcast band for NCE use, as well as channel 200 (87.9 MHz) for class-D NCE stations.3 The FCC has never reserved any AM channels for noncommercial use. In 1952, the FCC ruled that when more than three VHF channels were assigned to a city, one would be reserved for educational institutions. A total of 242 channels were reserved. By 2001, these had grown to more than 370 public TV stations.4 The current estimated value of NCE television spectrum ranges from $1.96 billion to $26.8 billion.5 There are currently 3,311 NCE FM stations in the U.S., approximately 23 percent of the total number of radio stations.6 The FCC Media Bureau estimates that about 500 more NCE stations will be created over the next three years as a result of applications granted during the 2007 and 2010 filing windows. There are 391 noncommercial TV licensees.7

Noncommercial stations are generally subject to ordinary FCC broadcasting rules, with some exceptions.8 The FCC requires certain governance structures of some noncommercial broadcasters. Noncommercial TV stations not affiliated with universities or governments are required to submit "evidence that officers, directors and members of the governing board are broadly representative of the educational, cultural, and civic groups in the community."9 To meet this standard, a noncommercial TV station or applicant must show that a majority (over 50 percent) of its governing board is broadly representative of the community.10

Although this does not apply to stations run by universities or governments, some have suggested that it should.

Noncommercial television stations are issued licenses for an eight-year period. Eleven noncommercial TV renewal applications filed during the last renewal cycle remain pending due to the filing of an objection or because of indecency or EEO holds. In the FCC's history, we could find only two instances in which the Commission has denied the license renewal applications of public broadcasting licensees.11

Noncommercial television stations have the same FCC disclosure requirements as commercial. They compile issues/programs lists that ostensibly show how they have served the community.

FCC Programming Requirements Noncommercial licenses are available only for "educational" purposes. TV stations must show that the licenses will be used "primarily to serve the educational needs of the community; for the advancement of educational programs; and to furnish a nonprofit and noncommercial television broadcast service."12 This includes transmitting "educational, cultural, and entertainment programs."13 FM radio licensees must be nonprofit educational organizations that advance "an educational program."14

314

In practice, though, the FCC has allowed the stations to determine for themselves whether they have produced programming of this sort. The Commission has intentionally left "educational programming" undefined, describing public broadcasting instead in terms of what it is not: Public stations "are not operated by profit-seeking organizations nor supported by on-the-air advertising," with their "positive dimensions" determined by "social, political, and economic forces outside the Commission."15

Because noncommercial stations have an educational mission, whose contours have been left unspecified, the FCC has never adopted public interest programming rules for noncommercial stations, such as requiring that a certain amount of airtime be dedicated to local news.

Noncommercial FM Radio Licenses (2010)

28% Other

30% NPR members

42% Religious broadcasters

Religious Broadcasters Forty-two percent of noncommercial educational radio stations broadcast in a primarily religious format. According to FCC regulations, stations may broadcast in this format, and a noncommercial license may be held by a religious entity, so long as the station is to "be used primarily to serve the educational needs of the community."16 Here, too, section 326 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, precludes the Commission from favoring, censoring, or determining program choices, except for some narrow exceptions. The FCC has traditionally let the licensee determine whether it is serving educational purposes.17

Source: BIA and NI

FCC Rules and Public Broadcasting Business Models Various rules and laws (including several by the FCC and CPB)

restrict the ability of noncommercial broadcasters to generate

revenue. In general, public broadcasters have accepted the restrictions, fearing that using commercial revenue-gener-

ation techniques would alienate donors and undercut the arguments for government or foundation funding.

Underwriting There has always been tension between giving noncommercial TV and radio stations flexibility to raise revenue and preserving their character as "noncommercial" entities (i.e., operating on a not-for-profit basis and without commercials). Section 399(b) of the Communications Act prohibits the broadcast of advertisements on noncommercial stations.18

In 1984, the FCC granted stations more flexibility by adopting a policy of "enhanced underwriting,"19 which permitted noncommercial stations to broadcast donor and underwriter acknowledgements from for-profit entities. These acknowledgments can include logograms and slogans that identify, but do not promote, sponsoring businesses. They may include business location information, value-neutral descriptions of a product line or service, and brand and trade names along with product or service listings.20 That is why some underwriting messages resemble ads. Subjects that cannot be mentioned in underwriting announcements include price information, such as discounts, rebates, and interest rates; calls to action; inducements to buy, sell, rent, or lease; and any language that states or implies favorable comparisons to other like businesses or competitors.21

The underwriting policy has some gray areas. Sometimes it is difficult to distinguish between language and images that are descriptive and those that are promotional. Having too many shots of a product, or flashing or blinking features, has been considered promotional, although there are no quantitative boundaries defining what constitutes one image too many.22 Describing a phone company's "quick connection and clear sound" has been prohibited on the grounds that it implies a comparative advantage over the company's competitors.23 The FCC usually defers to broadcasters,24 but in worrying about stepping over the line, licensees struggle to determine whether donor acknowledgments are descriptive, but not "comparative or qualitative,"25 and whether slogans identify, but do not promote.26 The FCC has said that "lengthy" or "verbose" announcements are more likely to be deemed promotional, but it has not said how many words or seconds constitute verbosity.27

315

In written comments filed with the FCC, most public broadcasters did not advocate for a significant loosening of the standards. Although they would welcome the ability to raise more revenue, public broadcasters fear that if their programming ends up seeming too commercial, they will lose their rationale for public and member funding. This concern, however, is not necessarily shared by the entire noncommercial broadcasting community. National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) has a different view: "NRB urges the FCC to both clarify, and to relax, the current rules that permit noncommercial broadcasters to give very short sponsorship mentions on the air as long as they `identify' the sponsor but do not `promote' the sponsor. The line-drawing here is confusing and inconsistent."28 NRB argues that even if secular public broadcasters do not want this flexibility, religious broadcasters should have extra leeway, since they do not get federal money through CPB.29

Though the FCC publishes on its website enforcement actions related to underwriting, several parties have asked for clarifications on what is or is not allowed.30 For instance, NPR wrote in 2010: "NPR and its public broadcasting colleagues work hard and carefully to comply with the FCC's rules, but uncertainties about particular language issues have made the task substantially more difficult, especially given the changing nature and expectations of underwriters."31 National public radio identifies the following as "issues that arise routinely and that are not addressed by the FCC's formal guidance":

"1. Aspirational language, such as language describing an automobile tire as `designed to extend mileage' or `helping reduce energy loss.' "2. References to technical specifications, such as language describing an air filter as `99.9 percent efficient and 100 percent covered in textured grip control.' "3. References to third party standards, such as `ENERGY STAR rated' appliances. "4. Language referring to a funder's website for product specific information, such as `where visitors can learn more about the importance of inspecting shocks and struts at fifty thousand miles.' "5. Language describing an episode of a television program as `all-new' or `a sneak preview.' "6. A reference to an award, such as an `Academy Award' winning movie or actor. "7. References to product ingredients, such as `130 calories or less per serving.' "8. References to a funder's charitable endeavors, such as `investing $100 million towards education each year.' "9. Quantitative references to a funder's specific experience, such as `thirty-five years of clinical experience.' "10. References to arguably promotional website addresses, such as `Trust the Check dot com.'"32

There has been some confusion as to whether underwriting rules apply to the websites created by public TV or radio stations. To be clear: the FCC rules do not restrict advertising or sponsorships on the websites in any way.33 Guidelines on types of permissible sponsorship apply only on air. Of course, stations may decide to avoid ads on their websites, and the CPB is creating incentives for stations to apply broadcast underwriting standards to online advertising.34

Merchandising Public broadcasters are allowed to generate ancillary revenue by selling merchandize related to their shows. The licensing of children's characters has been the most lucrative. But there are restrictions. Though the stations can allow for the creation of program-related merchandise, they cannot market any of it on air. And many broadcasters choose not to explore these options for fear of a backlash along the lines of what happened in the early 1990s when PBS forfeited the license fees from Barney, because it was under political pressure to remain noncommercial.35

Again, under FCC rules, while stations might be prohibited from marketing merchandise on air, they are allowed to do so on their websites.

There has been some confusion as to whether the FCC's underwriting restrictions apply to the websites created by public TV or radio stations. To be clear: they do not.

316

Public TV stations have must-carry rights on cable TV, but, unlike commercial broadcasters, they are unable to get paid for their signals through "retransmission consent" fees.

Retransmission Fees Public TV stations have must-carry rights on cable TV, but, unlike commercial broadcasters, they are unable to get paid for their signals through "retransmission consent" fees.36 Public TV leaders have been reluctant to ask for this authority, lest it undercut their status as noncommercial broadcast entities. It is not known how much additional revenue this could generate for local public TV stations.

Fundraising for Third Parties

Noncommercial broadcasters are generally prohibited from engaging in fundraising activities for other nonprofits.37

This rule is intended to prevent the reserved noncommercial spectrum from being used as a barker platform for

fundraising, taking time away from the provision of noncommercial service. The FCC has granted waivers in special

circumstances, such as to permit on-air fundraising for Haiti relief and, to help restore a Washington, D.C. arts facility

destroyed by fire.38 NRB noted that WMIT-FM, in Asheville, North Carolina, used such a waiver to raise $272,250 in an

on-air fundraiser in February 2010 for the Haiti relief project of nonprofit Samaritan's Purse--an amount projected

to help "1,815 Haitian families with shelter, clean water, and medical supplies."39

The National Religious Broadcasters has proposed that noncommercial stations should be permitted to use

up to one percent of their airtime to raise money for nonprofits. NRB's executive director suggests that among those

that might benefit are "local rescue missions in their listening areas" and international relief organizations.40 NRB

argues that these fundraising-based shows would help raise awareness about important local and international issues

such as hunger and global poverty. It also appears that the current waiver-based system puts the FCC in the position of

deciding which human tragedy is most worthy of fundraising. It is not

clear, for instance, why restoring an arts facility would be permissible but addressing persistent homeless in a community would not be.

Many secular public broadcasting officials do not want to have this flexibility because it would put them in the awkward position of de-

The National Religious Broadcasters has asked for the ability to do fundraising

ciding which worthy cause to support and which to reject. But at least one secular noncommercial broadcaster also endorses relaxation of the thirdparty fundraising rule. Joseph Bruns, a longtime public TV executive and currently COO of WETA in Washington, argues (in comments reflecting

for "local rescue missions in their listening areas" and international relief

his personal views, not necessarily those of WETA) that relaxation would allow for more creative partnerships and enable broadcasters to highlight

organizations.

worthy charities in the community, thereby deepening the station's con-

nection to the community.41 Bruns notes that since they rely on donors, many public TV stations have the necessary

infrastructure, including a "television production facility, and a backroom fundraising operation that can handle a large

volume of call-in donations." The ability to participate in third-party fundraising, he argues, would allow noncommercial

stations to expand their "community service mission" by "allowing us to work with social service nonprofit organizations

and to lend to them our capability to allow them to extend their own community awareness and fundraising appeal."

What Bruns imagines is "a kind of telethon in which we would bring in local celebrities, politicians, sports figures, music

groups, and the like. We would allow the organizations an opportunity to do a presentation of what they do and why they

are worthy of support."42 A local public broadcasting station could partner with a nonprofit news web start-up in develop-

ing and distributing content. The station would gain access to additional local content, and the nonprofit might in turn

benefit from increased distribution as well as further fundraising opportunities.

Digital Stations Noncommercial television stations are entitled to carriage, through must-carry regulations, on local cable systems. Although public television stations are not legally entitled to carriage of their digital multicast signals, a private agree-

317

ment between the National Cable Television Association and the Association of Public Television Stations in 2005 provides for cable carriage of up to four multicast programming streams from each public television station for a 10-year period.43 All noncommercial television stations are required to use their digital capacity "primarily for a noncommercial, nonprofit, educational broadcast service,"44 but they may also use some of it for commercial purposes, to generate income for the overall enterprise. In a controversial 2001 Report and Order, the Commission stated that noncommercial stations could accept traditional advertising on capacity that they are not using for broadcasting, even though they cannot do it on their primary channel.45 If they do so, the noncommercial stations, like commercial licensees, must also pay the FCC a fee amounting to 5 percent of gross revenues generated.46 In 2010, 88 full-power public TV stations reported revenues of $435,916.50 from ancillary and supplementary services and paid the FCC $21,795.83 in fees.47

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting

Although most public TV and radio funding comes from private sources, the money from the federal government is

often quite important. It can provide seed funding for projects, which then get additional support from other sources

such as universities, foundations, local governments, and viewers.48 It also covers the mundane overhead ("keeping

the lights on") that donors rarely want to support and that make station operations sustainable. This is particularly

true in smaller markets where it is often difficult to attract sufficient membership dollars and other private dona-

tions.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is the largest source of federal funding for public broadcast-

ing. Its federal appropriations for 2009 were approximately $400 million and $420 million for 2010.49 Public media

advocates argue that the federal financial commitment to public broadcasting is insufficient. It is certainly far lower

per-capita than that of many other western countries. U.S. taxpayers give about $1.35 each to public broadcasting per

year, compared with $24.88 in Canada, $58.86 in Japan, $80.36 in the

Various rules and laws

United Kingdom, and $101 in Denmark, based on appropriations (for the U.S.) and license fees (for the other countries) for 2007.50

restrict the ability of noncommercial broadcasters to generate income. In

Perhaps even more important in the continually changing media environment, CPB is limited in how it can distribute funds allocated to it. By law, it must direct most of its annual budget (89 percent) to TV and radio stations, as well as to programming for those stations.51 Seventy-

general, public broadcasters have accepted the restrictions, fearing that

five percent of its funds must go to television,52 25 percent to radio.53 Most of those funds go to station support,54 with only 25 percent of TV funding and 23 percent of radio funding going to programming.55 In recent years, CPB has been receiving an additional appropriation earmarked for

using commercial revenuegeneration techniques would alienate donors and

assisting TV (and to a lesser extent radio) stations with their digital transitions.56 The mechanism CPB uses to direct funds to public television and radio stations is the Community Service Grant (CSG).57 From 2009 to 2010, over 550 public TV and public radio stations received CSG disburse-

undercut the arguments for government or foundation funding.

ments, with approximately $212.2 million going to TV, and approximately $83.1 million to radio.58 Stations must qualify for CSGs by meeting a set of eligibility requirements. For one thing, a substantial majority of the station's daily total programming hours must be devoted to "CPB-qualified

programming, which is defined as general audience programming that

serves demonstrated community needs of an educational, informational,

and cultural nature."59 This excludes programs that further political or religious philosophies, as well as those that are

designed mainly for in-school audiences.60

In 2008, CSG funding constituted about 15.7 percent of the average public television station's budget and

10.1 percent of the average public radio station's budget.61 Small and rural stations rely on CSG funding much more

heavily than large urban stations do.62 The amounts granted are based mainly on the size of the service area, but CPB

also factors in considerations such as the amount of non-federal support the station receives, whether the station

318

is the sole broadcaster in its area, whether it is the first CPB-funded licensee in its area, whether the station serves

minority communities, and whether it is in a rural area. Because so much CPB funding is tied to statutory and CPB-

created formulae, it is difficult for CPB to reward excellence or adapt to changing circumstances. Stations almost

never lose CSG funding.63

In 2010, CPB conducted a review of CSG eligibility criteria. A panel of public media leaders recommended

creating more financial incentives for stations to merge or collaborate and requiring stations to disclose information

about local programming. But they declined to recommend that CPB require the production of local programming or

other community service performance metrics as a condition of funding.64

Some want CPB to go farther. Bill Kling, president and CEO of American Public Media (APM), has long

been an advocate for stricter CSG requirements that, for instance, mandate much more local content, larger full-time

station staffs, and a governance structure for stations that makes them accountable to the community rather than to

a university or other entity with diffuse interests.65 Free Press has similarly argued that CSG funds should be tied to

tougher performance standards for local stations.66 The advocacy group Association of Independents in Radio (AIR)

has urged the FCC to adopt local content rules for noncommercial stations that would prod stations to seek new

voices, including independent producers.67 CPB funding for independent programming now comes mostly through

small programs, such as the Radio Program Fund, which has been responsible for funding Radio Biling?e's national

program service, public radio's principal source of Latino programming; Koahnik Public Media's Native Voice 1, pub-

lic radio's principal source of Native American programming; and independent productions such as StoryCorps and

This I Believe.68

As noted in chapters 6?12, the nonprofit media sector includes many players other than noncommercial

TV and radio stations. In theory, CPB is permitted to fund these independent nonprofits;69 however, due to statutory

funding directives and the paucity of funds to disperse, CPB provides very little funding to them. In the past, adjust-

ments to federal legislation have served to broaden CPB's pool of grantees. For example, in response to TV and film

producers' complaints that they were being excluded from the public

television schedule, in 1988 Congress made the Independent Television Service (ITVS) a mandatory CPB grantee in order to promote innovative content for underserved audiences.70 AIR has argued that there should be a similar intervention on behalf of independent radio producers, who

A Public Media Platform is currently under development. Public broadcasting stations

are generally not funded by CPB.71

and other media entities

Technology and Infrastructure Funding There is a long tradition of federal funding (from various sources) going

would contribute content, which could then be sliced,

to public broadcasting infrastructure, as opposed to programming. For instance, CPB funds infrastructure through the satellite interconnection system, which made early use of satellites to network together program-

sorted, and redistributed to other public media entities.

ming among public television and radio stations nationwide.72

What will "infrastructure" mean in the future? Basic infrastructure will no longer be limited to radio towers

and satellite dishes, but will involve software, digital platforms, digital delivery systems, and applications. For example,

a Public Media Platform is currently under development by NPR, PBS, the Public Radio Exchange (PRX), APM, and

Public Radio International, with funding from CPB.73 The plan is for public broadcasting stations and other media

entities to contribute content, which could then be sliced, sorted, and redistributed to other public media entities. The

prototype for this platform is the NPR API, which has fostered the sharing of radio and web-based content among

public radio stations.

Another example of public media infrastructure not currently or systematically funded by the federal govern-

ment is the "middle mile" infrastructure that connects public broadcasting entities to anchor institutions and other

strategic points of access in local communities.74 Initiatives such as National Public Lightpath,75 which brings together

members of the education, media, public broadcasting, and government sectors to build broadband networks, have

called for increased federal funding to support universal access to broadband content that is in the public interest. The

2010 National Broadband Plan recommended that schools, hospitals, and other community institutions, including

319

public broadcasting stations, function as anchor institutions for community access to broadband, especially in Tribal lands and rural areas.76

Government has also funded public broadcasting "software," as opposed to physical infrastructure. Between 1994 and 2004, the Technology Opportunities Program (TOP), run by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) within the Commerce Department, gave grants to support new telecommunications and information technologies aimed at providing education, health care, and public information. In the course of those ten years, TOP awarded 610 grants totaling $233.5 million and leveraging $313.7 million in local matching funds.77 Only a small portion of TOP funds went to public media entities; among the public media grantees was PRX,78 which curates over 20,000 independently produced noncommercial radio programs, making them available to all stations on an open online platform.79 Also a CPB grantee, PRX developed what is currently one of public media's top innovations: the app that allows streaming of local radio stations on the iPhone.80 One of the benefits of CPB, NTIA, and other operations existing within a broader public service media framework is that small investments can be leveraged in ways that connect innovators to each other and to the larger system.

Since the TOP program ended in 2005, and given the constraints on CPB funding, there is currently little federal support for technical innovation either in the existing public broadcasting community or among new entrants to the public service media world. Thus, entities and individuals that, for instance, want to develop noncommercial mobile apps for educational use have no obvious place to go for start-up grants. Foundations have provided some support,81 but it remains to be seen whether their investments can be leveraged strategically to support widespread and follow-on innovation across communities and across the layers of public media activity, including distribution, applications, and content development.

Fundraising via New Technologies Smartphone applications have been an area of extraordinary growth for public radio. But there is some controversy over whether all technology companies are doing enough to facilitate charitable transactions. 82

The Problem of Rising Broadband Costs As noted in Chapter 6, public broadcasters face a serious new challenge, which threatens to interfere with future innovation. As more people access their video and audio content online, the costs of streaming the material could skyrocket. Commercial broadcasters can often offset those costs through ad deals that pay them more as video plays increase, but given the commitment of public broadcasters to remaining noncommercial, they are left in a peculiar position: the more popular their video and audio streams, the deeper into the cost hole they go.

No current public policy attempts to address this issue.

Structural and Governance Issues

Station Ownership and Governance In both radio and television, private nonprofit organizations own the bulk of NCE licenses. For television, the proportion is nearly half (approximately 46 percent) of total licenses; in radio, private nonprofits own roughly 62 percent of NCE licenses. A significant minority, however, are owned by governments or universities--a fact that may become more relevant if stations dive more deeply into the creation of local journalism. In TV, about 31 percent of licenses are owned by government (via boards, commissions, and authorities that are either directly or indirectly affiliated with city or states.) Colleges and universities own the remaining 23 percent. The numbers are slightly reversed in radio, with only 7 percent of NCE FM stations owned by entities affiliated with state and local governments and 31 percent owned by colleges and universities.

The composition of licensee types varies by state. For example, in states such as Georgia, Maryland, Alabama, Iowa, Arkansas, and South Dakota, all or nearly all of the NCE TV licenses are owned by state legislatures or government-affiliated entities. Private nonprofit organizations own all NCE TV licenses in Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Maine, Minnesota, New York, and North Dakota. Universities own nearly all television NCE licenses in Michigan and Utah.84

320

Distribution of TV and Radio Noncommercial Educational Licenses (2010)

NCE TV Licenses

NCE Radio Licenses

Private nonprofit

46%

62%

State/local government

31%

7%

Colleges and universities

23%

31%

Source: FCC data83

There seems to be widespread agreement that good governance, including a professional, involved, and accountable board, is important to the productivity of NCE stations.85 "Good governance is a combination of leadership structures, strong leadership at the top, vision, mission, strategy, a financial model that supports that core mission, and a sense of responsibility, accountability, and transparency to the community of service," says Terry Clifford, president of the Station Resources Group, a nonprofit public media consultancy.86

Community advisory boards, which are required for stations licensed to nonprofits, can provide some of this good governance.87 However, they are in some cases merely ceremonial. APM president and CEO, Bill Kling, says, "In my experience, advisory boards are treated sort of like the old FCC-required ascertainment process. They come together and talk about things they care about relative to programming content and then they leave."88 He contrasts this to "governing boards" which have the power to hire and fire, "decide how much financial risk they can take, open doors, raise money, approve and contribute to strategy and in even more ways, help move the vision of public media forward."89

Kling points to the example of KPCC in Los Angeles, which was licensed to Pasadena City College, and as such was not required to have a community advisory board, nor did it have a governing board that was focused uniquely on station operations. Instead, KPCC was governed by the elected board of trustees of the college, which managed the station along with all other college departments. The station had a budget of about $1 million, an annual deficit of $135,000, and an audience so small that it did not meet CPB audience minimums. The KPCC license was then leased to Southern California Public Radio, a nonprofit with a direct governing board (as well as a community advisory board, but that was not the game changer). It hired a new CEO, revised the program line-up, built a professional news department, added bureaus and offices in downtown L.A. and in Orange County, added a transmitter in the Inland Empire and Palm Springs, and brought in professionals for fundraising, marketing, and underwriting. Today, the station has the largest news audience of any public media company in L.A. (600,000), an aggressive digital media initiative, a balanced budget of $16 million, a new $27 million production center that has already been paid for, and a powerful, diverse board of directors, and it has become a "centering institution" for the diverse communities of Southern California.90

If CPB were to require all licensees to have a direct governing board as a condition of funding, public media could in many cases be strengthened.91 In practice, this would mean that university and state licensees would appoint boards to run their stations. A direct governance requirement could help strengthen the already-strong university-run stations and nudge those university and state licensees that have little interest in managing a public media company to transfer control or operation of those facilities to other entities. Alternatively, they could appoint boards to oversee station performance. Bill Kling has urged that the FCC make the existence of a direct governing board a requirement of license renewal.92

Consolidation As detailed in Chapter 6, there is some duplication of services among public TV stations in certain markets. For many years, CPB has tried to get multi-provider markets (also known as "overlap markets") to consolidate by offering financial incentives, but so far it has not achieved much change. A report on public media by the Aspen Institute recommended that the FCC take action to encourage consolidation: "The FCC should adopt policies that ease station acquisition, mergers and operating agreements."93 The FCC permits stations to enter into shared services agreements, as long as control of the stations rests with the licensees, as required by the Communications Act.94 One obstacle

321

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download